STARKVILLE, Miss. – Lipscomb junior Kelsey Cartwright has been named to the NFCA All-South Region second team, the coaches association announced Thursday.

Cartwright hit 18 home runs, setting the Lipscomb single-season record, to go along with team highs in RBI (45), steals (14) and batting average (.381) on her way to first-team all-conference honors from the Atlantic Sun and CollegeSportsMadness.com. The Auburn transfer started all 55 games for Lipscomb in 2012.

“Kelsey was such a vital part of our team this year, both offensively and defensively,” said Lipscomb head coach Kristin Ryman. “She became the most feared hitter in our line-up. On the whole, she put together one of the best single-seasons in program history.

“We’re in a region with a bunch of high-quality teams and that’s who our kids compete against for region honors. It speaks volumes for her and our program that we have quality players who make a difference.”

She led Lipscomb with 15 multi-hit games and 12 multi-RBI games. Her 11-game hitting streak was the longest by a Lipscomb player during the 2012 season. Cartwright had two multi-home run games in 2012, including the season-finale against Kennesaw State May 11 in the A-Sun Tournament.

For all her prowess at the plate, Cartwright struck out a mere 15 times in 168 at-bats.

Cartwright had three five-RBI games (Feb. 25 against MTSU, March 11 against Alabama State and March 24 at Cal Poly), accounting for a third of her season total.

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